BWC
Architects
BWC_Architects_Blog_Tilte-Graphic.png

Blog

Goings on at the BWC Architecture Studio

Hacking the Building Code: Part one - What are building codes and where do I find them?

In the wake of the tragic Ghostship fire in Oakland, I got more involved with various planning and building departments by helping artist spaces and maker associations who were looking for advice to get fully legal. In my work at BWC, I’ve also have taken many complex and unusual projects from concept to finished construction in many different cities. From this experience, I’ve realized that a guide to interacting with building officials and codes for people looking to do creative things with space was sorely needed. This series of blog posts hopes to be that guide, with the first post all about what Codes are and where to find them.

Disclaimer

This series is purely for informational and educational purposes and does not constitute professional or legal advice. While this information is provided by Because We Can, and while we endeavor to keep this information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. We do not provide any guarantees or warrant and do not accept any liability on your actions from this information. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk, and we highly recommend you hire a building professional (like us) to review your specific case. 

The various codes and what they do

If you’re working on something good, you’re going to need space. Usually that’s going to be inside of a building. And when it comes to the rules around buildings things get complex quickly. All the various rules that apply to a building are confusing to even trained professionals in the industry. So it’s incredibly difficult for someone who’s never navigated these waters before to even understand what rules they have to follow, let alone properly follow all of them.

However, there are some easy-to-learn overarching concepts that I’ll explain in this series. My hope is that you’ll learn enough here to be able to complete your own research of what you need to do to ‘Meet Code’, or at least be better informed when you do hire an expert (like me) to help. Because every situation is going to be different and very specific to your needs, location, neighborhood, and city. Empowered with a basic understanding, you’ll be able to ask the right questions, get the right information, and get a better grasp on how the various codes apply to your efforts as a small business owner, creator, artist, or community.

Why do we even need codes?

‘Code’ is a catch-all term for the various laws, rules, statutes, and written codes you’ll need to follow. So you might say to yourself ‘why do we need all these rules? I’m safe and smart and sane!’. It’s because no matter how safe you might be, your neighbor might not be, so we have to have rules. These regulations are really focused on the health and safety of the community and have grown and changed as our understanding of safety has changed. They are a good idea, they save lives, and shouldn’t be broken. And if you’re not a building professional it is very possible that you don’t fully understand the risks you might be taking if you do break them.

The tragic Ghostship fire in Oakland shows that these rules are meant to protect far more than just the few people who may be making the (sometimes terrible) decisions of how to use a building. Yes, there are too many rules, and sometimes they conflict, and they don’t always make sense, and they totally get in the way sometimes, but at their core they are trying to help. Arguing that there should be less of them is pointless to actually getting anything done. So let’s get on with it!

Which codes and where to find them

When it comes to a building, there are four main types of Codes you’ll need to follow, and which rules apply within those codes depend largely upon the Use of the building. Use is something we’ll talk about in more detail in the next part of this series, but in brief it’s the formal on-record use that you will be using the building for.

The codes are A Lot, for they aren’t cross-referenced, easily searched globally, or coordinated between various departments. You’ll need to do a lot of legwork! Services like Upcodes can certainly help but just be forewarned that there can totally be more codes that apply to your situation that you aren’t aware of yet, but that do apply to what you’re doing. A comprehensive study and lots of questions to building officials are required to really get the full picture. 

Also this isn’t computer code, it’s legal code, and intent counts a great amount therein. While there can be ‘loopholes’ you can find that sometimes can work to solve a specific minor issue, trying to apply said ‘loopholes’ when you’re honestly trying to cheat is only going to make building officials mad at you and thus make your project much harder to do. Also just because you’ve found a single detail in the codes that you think is a ‘gotcha’ that’s going to let you ‘pull one over’ on the building officials or get around a bunch of rules, in all likelihood you’re either misinterpreting the code and/or the building official is just going to say ‘no’ anyways. In other words, just because you put your tiny house on wheels, and now call it a ‘trailer’ so it’s technically ‘not a house’ anymore, doesn’t mean the Fire Marshal is going to let you get away with anything they think is unsafe.

City Codes

These are the laws your town has about buildings, and what you can use them for. It’s things like ‘you can only be open during certain hours if you’re a cafe that serves beer’ or ‘you can’t sell certain items (like beer) in a bookstore’ or ‘community spaces can’t also be industrial spaces’. While they tend to be pretty specific to how a business can operate, they can also get into more specifics when it comes to spaces a creative use might need. For example, in some places, in order to be a legal woodshop you have to have a special permit, and in order to get that permit you have to have a specific kind of fire sprinkler system (that’s been tested and certified to work), regardless of the fact that maybe the other various Codes don’t call for these things or even make mention of them. 

City Codes vary by County and City. You can usually find them online from your local City’s website. Sadly they are not standardized at all, and even the way they are organized, the terms they use, and the way they cover things can be wildly different from county to county or city to city. Some places don’t even have all of them online! But it’s best to start here reviewing your specific case before you get any farther. Thankfully, most Cities have a business office of some kind, where you get your business permit for that City, and hopefully that office can answer your questions directly with just a nice visit or two.

Zoning Codes 

Planning (sometimes also called Zoning instead) gets to say What sort of building goes Where. These Codes refer to what sort of use a building can have and what sorts of features the building has to have depending on its location. So for example, in some cities you can’t have an industrial space in certain residential neighborhoods, due to Planning Codes stating that only certain areas of the City can have “an industrial use”. Or maybe you can’t have a theater without the building having a certain number of parking spots. Or maybe you can’t add another story onto your building, even an interior mezzanine, for you can only have a certain ‘floor area ratio’ in a specific neighborhood.

Planning / Zoning Codes vary by County and City. You can usually find them online from your local City’s website. They are not standardized at all, and even the way they are organized, the terms they use, and the way they cover things can be wildly different from county to county or city to city. But thankfully most Cities have a Zoning or Planning department where you can visit in person, talk through your project and what you’re trying to do, and they can help point you to the right rules and code sections you’ll need to understand.

Building Codes

Building Code gets to say How a building is supposed to be made, depending on What sort of building it is. They drive standards such as doors having to be a certain width, floors having to support a specific weight, or a limit of how many people can be within a space based upon the number of exits it has and what it’s built out of. Typically it’s broken into different Codes, such as Building, Plumbing, Electrical, Fire, Historic, Energy, etc.

Building Codes vary by State, but are all typically based upon the International Building Code, with special additions made by your State, and sometimes even more additions made by your City. So they tend to follow the same structure and organization, and are much easier to deal with from town-to-town. 

Sadly due to copyright issues, they probably aren’t listed on your State’s government website. However, It’s likely that your local Building Codes can be found on Public.Resource.org If so, please send Carl some money to his non-profit, because he’s fighting the good fight, is a great guy, and needs all the help he can get. Or you can pay for a service like UpCodes, which is also a great way to get access to the codes online. And most public libraries and some building departments will have physical copies you can read or even borrow.

Industry Standards

Industry Standards are all the various rules that apply to more specific ways that things need to be done. A great example is OSHA and its numerous standards for specific work activities. But another great example you may not have heard of is United Laboratories standards, which define all sorts of lab-tested standards that things need to meet to be safe.

Sometimes the more open and free Planning or Building codes will call out these more closed, non-public specific industry standards that you have to follow. One such example is the Building and Fire Code saying that Fire Sprinklers have to meet certain standards listed in the NFPA. Which is a copyrighted, closed standard that’s not even a law, but instead produced by a trade association devoted to fire safety.

Industry Standards, such as OSHA, NFPA, UL, and others can be very hard to find for free. Again, Public.Resource.org may have them, but if they don’t, the City may have a copy you can review for free. Some of these standards can cost a lot of money! 

Watch out, there’s even more codes!

Lastly, always check what Codes will actually apply to your building. Sometimes Cities don’t adopt certain sections of codes. If you’re on federal land or in a historic building it’s possible you don’t have to follow certain codes. Certain uses can make other codes that aren’t part of this guide apply, such as serving food prompting you to meet health codes. And sometimes there can be additional codes just due to the location of the building because of it being next to a shoreline, national forest, or other existing feature. 

The best way to figure all this out is to hire a professional. The next best way is to go to the City and talk to the Planning, Building, Business Development, and Fire departments and ask plainly ‘what other codes could apply to my building?’ and then dig deep into the codes to understand what applies and what might not.

Our next section will be all about how to talk to the various building officials in the most professional and productive ways.

Jeffrey McGrew
AI and automation's impact on Architecture via the Seven Steps

A hot topic right now is the use of AI in design and art, and we here at BWC have been using tools like MidJourney and Stable Diffusion for generating inspirational images when exploring an idea or design.

There’s lots of talk about what AI and Automation will and won’t replace within the design world, and from having given talks on the subject in the past and being heavily involved with automation for furniture production, I thought we’d share our current thinking on the subject.

Looking through the lens of the ‘seven steps’ we use at BWC to describe and track the whole end-to-end process of creating a building or space, here’s how we think AI will impact each step.

Inspiration

What some call ‘schematic design’ or ‘concept design’ we call Inspiration. It’s the first step where we’re working closely with a client to determine what we’re going to build to best fit their needs, the preliminary costs of the project, and what the project could look like. We tend to create several different design options, 3D models, interactive walkthroughs, mood boards, and more during this step.

We think this step is both going to be the most impacted and the least impacted by AI. 

It’s already making a big impact on generating visual ideas of ‘what the project could look like’. There are currently tools where you can submit a 3D model or photo and have an AI image generator do different versions with different materials, styles, and looks. Soon I think you’ll be able to submit photos of a building, space, or empty site, prompt for different styles, and get back lots of different actually workable ideas complete with plans and specific product lists. You probably won’t need a designer anymore for this part of this step, for anyone will be able to prompt a system to ‘show me what my house would look like with a modern addition that contains a bedroom and bathroom’. And with tools like Testfit and others, we can even see that the ‘schematic design’ of more complex projects could possibly be fully automated as well.

However, on the opposite end, a huge part of the Inspiration step is the insight, vision, and excitement a great designer brings to the table. Being able to really understand what the client wants and making sure it’s being addressed in the best way possible is still a very ‘soft’ skill. For example, we have lots of clients tell us that they love ‘Victorian Homes’ when in actuality what they love are big windows, tall ceilings, colorful exterior paint jobs, and cozy rooms dedicated to a specific use. They actually don’t want a real Victorian, which would be gray on the outside, a psychedelic riot wonderland of overlapping colorful wallpaper and trim and carpets and curtains and rugs on the inside, and a whole lot of money spent on historic reproductions and overall upkeep. Or a client wants to create an inspiring and stunning space for a group of people to gather, which requires really understanding what those people would find inspiring and stunning. Truly understanding what a client is looking for, how people respond to things, and helping get to the best idea possible isn’t something you can do with ‘prompt engineering’ alone. You can’t get what you want if you don’t know the right questions to ask to get it!

Configuration

This step is sometimes called ‘Design Development’ or ‘Concept Development’, it’s where the concepts from the first step are taken and broken down into designs detailed enough for accurate quoting and/or actual products that will be ordered and used.

It’s going from the idea of a new dining table for the dining room as part of the project to specifying a specific one from a specific brand in a certain wood and size.

We feel that this step could probably be automated at some point, where a trained model looks at your concepts and then generates plans and lists of the actual materials, products, and construction methods you might use to make the project; but that it’s more likely new combo ‘design + market’ tools like Canoa will move into this space with ever-better and smarter tools for this step. You’d be using an AI model, but via a ‘smart’ design tool that’s helping you make good selections by watching what you’re doing and predicting what else would be a good fit. Just as most good construction estimators use a combo of historic data and hard-won personal wisdom / experience to generate accurate price predictions, I think AI is likely to only empower most good professionals for this step with better data and tools to apply their experience to. There’s lots of problems in computer science where even the very best systems are only slightly better than a normal person, and not better than an expert, when it comes to certain complex multi-variable and abstract tasks. So you might be able to make a AI model that can do reasonable configurations, just like you can make one that can make a basic logo for a business, but you probably won’t be able to make one that’s significantly better at it than a trained, experienced professional who’s using AI-empowered tools.

Rationalization

This step is sometimes referred to as ‘construction drawings’, ‘shop drawings’, and/or ‘DfMA’, it’s where the configured designs are fully detailed out to where they can actually be built.

We feel that while this step is going to be greatly aided by automated AI systems, much like with Configuration there’s still a large domain of problems that aren’t deterministic enough or have too many possibilities that pure AI systems just might not be much better than a skilled human using AI-empowered tools. Engineering is still a balance of art and science, of figuring out the best compromises and solutions. So while I think automation and AI will have a huge impact on this step, it’s more likely to be in making the tools the designers are using to rationalize the work into properly manufacturable designs more productive for them to use, and not replacing the designers altogether like in some other steps.

Fabrication & Installation

These steps are where the actual construction of the project happens. Parts and materials are made and/or ordered (fabrication), then delivered to the site, modified as needed, and then assembled into place (installation).

We think this step could only be fully automated if the actual construction was so standardized and/or deterministic as to make the actual assembly easily done by robots. And from personally working with robots, nothing with them is actually very easy. Much like computers in general, they are amazing at tirelessly doing exactly what you tell them to do, over and over, but you quickly get into diminishing returns when you try to fully automate something completely.

What we think is more likely to happen is that the tools themselves used to create the parts for the project will get smarter and better, and the tools to help coordinate their assembly will get better, but much of the physical work will still be done by people. Semi-automated tools working together with skilled people will make the projects easier and faster, automated tools won’t replace the people for this step. A great example of this is all the awesome work going on in automated layout, where a robot draws or marks out where the walls, ducts, electrical, plumbing, etc. goes on the site, directed from the BIM / CAD models. The affordable and small robot makes the people doing the actual construction work more effective and productive, less likely to make mistakes, and more likely to see problems before they get too far into the project. Instead of trying to ‘solve’ the entire problem of construction assembly via robotics, even really smart AI-empowered robotics, which would cost a fortune and still not be 100% right, I see much more success in smaller, cheaper robots / AI that is just looking to empower the skilled workers already present.

Utilization

This final step is where the project is complete, and is now being used, and hopefully being studied for how well it’s actually working and/or minor follow up edits done to improve how it’s working.

This step is one where AI-driven automation could make a huge impact as well in helping identify problems and assess the performance of the project in ways that are currently too expensive to easily measure. Just a few simple cameras, cheap sensors, and a smart trained model could do what you’d normally have to hire expensive consultants to manually do. Or could make the tools that larger retail and entertainment companies already use in this space more accessible to smaller businesses that might want to measure things like ‘engagement’, ‘customer satisfaction’, a building’s energy footprint, or other post-occupancy studies.

The Robots are Here…

So the genie is out of the bottle, and AI-driven tools are here to change the construction industry in some big, bad, and awesome ways over the next decade, and I think it’s only going to accelerate from here.

Personally I’m very excited about it all! But don’t hide in ignorance and think your particular role within the construction industry is ‘safe’, instead I’d say to work on those ‘soft skills’ in understanding people better along with learning how to leverage these amazing AI-empowered tools to meet those people’s needs even better than before!

Jeffrey McGrew
12 Years of Architecture & Design

This month marks 12 years (!!) of our Architectural & Design Build practice. Thank you to all our partners along the way.

Here’s to 12+ more…..

We have met so many wonderful people through our practice that we now call friends, and want to thank you all for trusting us with your buildings, homes and all your cool design creation needs. We’ve enjoyed every project, and collaborating with you has made the work that much better.

Being able to work on projects that are truly imaginative and inspiring is such a privilege. We strive to hold that bar even higher as we continue to pour our hearts and professionalism into every project.

Cheers to you, all the people that we know, making our lives better and more interesting.

Cheers to the year to come and to those we've yet to meet.

We're looking forward to this year - and all that it will bring.

Happy New Year to all!

2022 in a few photos….

Downtown Oakland Office

The final photos of one of our recent projects - this downtown Oakland Office - are now on our site.

A lovely small office in a vibrant area of downtown Oakland. The bright interior, living walls and dark hardwood slab tables make it a calm and effective place to work, while the uniqueness of the interior design elements create an inspiring environment for the staff and clients (if we do say so ourselves).

Living walls, thick hardwood slabs with custom made stout steel legs, bespoke ceiling sculptures and integrated lighting schemes. We’re excited to finally get this project online, added to our portfolio of uniquely excellent work and happy clients. You can see the full project page here, under our Architecture section.


Jillian Northrup
BWC Flat Pack Xmas Tree

As we enter the holiday season we’re fully embracing the festive feeling! Unpacking the holiday decor is always fun, and we currently have a stash of these Flat Pack BWC Holiday Trees in stock…

At 30” tall, they are large enough to be decorated with small ornaments and lights. These whimsically designed tabletop trees will bring holiday cheer to any room. Made of certified sustainably harvested woods and soy based glues, these lightweight Maple plywood ‘trees’ are sold unfinished in their natural raw wood. Enjoy them in their warm natural wood beauty, or paint them as you desire!  Either way they will add a bit of joyful decoration to your home.

Tree Assembly: even a child can do it!

Jillian Northrup
Funky up your office space: Interior Finishes & Custom Furniture

As employees are coming back to the office and settling into a new normal of hybrid work life, a little office refresh is in order. Offices are taking the hybrid staff as an opportunity to renovate and bring new excitement, and thus productivity into their spaces.

We’ve just nailed down the flooring direction, wall colors, and custom furniture pieces for this space. Finish selection has been done and the new flooring is in! And now we are all systems go…… To a bright and bold future!

This company is taking over some additional space to expand their office break room / multi function space. We've been brought in as the interior design renovation team to completely redesign this new interior space as well as update the existing lobby and adjoining conference rooms. Shown here below is a renovation design for the the currently barren space (with bland office carpeting); we’re updating all the finishes. In doing the interior renovation and architectural drawings for the new space we've also designed some custom pieces with hardwood walnut break room tables, bespoke hanging felt fixtures, outdoor tiki bar, custom shelving throughout and a wild bar in the kitchenette.

Currently the construction team we’re working with from Creek Development has been moving walls around, building new ones, installing new flooring and lights and this week... new paint!

Updating the floors, walls and lighting, will be a huge refresh. But once our custom shelving, hanging fixtures and tables go in, this place is going to be a awesome place to connect with fellow staff, or grab a change of scenery from your usual desk.

Throughout the space, wall to wall opening shelving will be used for the coutless decoative and interesting items this company has collected over the years. It is a wonderful thing to surround yourself in the items you love (!!!)

A small kitchenette with a crazy prop / bar will be inside, while a fun outdoor tiki bar grotto hang out space will be right outside the large glass doors.

There is nothing better than updating a space to function as you truly want it to function. Come the new year the staff will be in here enjoying this awesome new space. We’re looking forward to 2023, and getting back to work!

We’ll post more images as the build out progresses….

Jillian Northrup
The Parkets at The Interval

The Interval at The Longnow now has Parklets!

We designed these nice compact 4 seater parklets to match the aesthetic of the San Francisco, Fort Mason complex where they now live. As an extension of The Bar & Cafe, The Interval, which we designed and built back in 2014, the parklets seating was designed to match booth seating inside The Interval. Perfect to sit with a beverage for a long conversation.

The mobile capacity of the Parklets allows them to be easily moved around for events, evening storage and fire lane access. But also remain sturdily locked in place during use.

Their integrated wind blocks visually invisible in a transparent polycarbonate, but they are well appreciated when the cold sea air comes through and the custom etched designs just barely visible add that little bit of delight.

This beautiful San Francisco, Fort Mason location is a lovely spot to sit outside and enjoy these Parklets for a morning coffee or an evening cocktail from The Interval’s epic and renowned beverage menu.

Jillian Northrup
Twin Hybrid Space for employees

Here comes COVID again ruining everything…. I’m joking, but also, not really. Earlier this year, and we will most likely see it again, the waves of COVID put a start / stop schedule on in person work gatherings.

COVID be damned, our client’s 30 year anniversary event was happening… regardless! and it needed to be a joyous occasion where all employees could get together in the same physical space and celebrate their years of hard work and passion. 

We had been working on the project, designed and built a wonderful celebratory space, set up much like a gallery, filled with interactive elements, fun wayfinding, tactile pieces on display and beautifully designed informational panels. But suddenly more than half the company would not be coming in to see it.

We needed a remote option. We needed to make it work. We needed a hybrid space: both a physical space to gather in person and a digital twin that gave a comparable if not exact as possible experience. Because the event was built like an interactive gallery experience with internal educational facts and stories to enjoy, the staff attending the event, whether in person or remote, needed to have the same takeaways and information from the experience.

So we created a digital twin- in both look and feel, information and  (as much as possible) interactivity.

Because we have always heavily leveraged the digital side of designing for our physical projects, we were able to pivot quickly and easily when this request came to us, providing a really enjoyable experience; physical and remote.

Once in use, the internal teams found this space incredibly useful. Not only as a celebration of their achievements over the years, but also as a way to educate their staff from within. Recent hires were able to go into this space, set up much like a museum display, to read about the past history, learning more about the company, the culture, goals and fun facts, all in an interactive display.

We made sure there were comparable interactive elements whether you engaged with the space remotely or in person. 

In the current hybrid work environment, we are supporting our clients in new and innovative ways; keeping work moving forward!

Jillian Northrup
‘Fusion for Architects & Designers’ and a new logo…

The last blog post we did before COVID was at the end of 2019, and we were at an industry conference called Autodesk University. We are happy to be back here again at AU this year! Jeffrey McGrew and I are here this week, enjoying re-connecting with some friends in the industry.

Jeffrey's talk is on Wednesday "Fusion for Architects & Designers" - it is a CAD software conference after all!

If you are here and want to connect - please send us a note

In a way, we are here at the conference to promote and celebrate the dividing and refining of our services at Because We Can, Inc. Our company has always had two rather distinct factions of itself: providing both Architecture & interior design services on one side and fabrication services on the other. For the most part, our fabrication services support our own internal designs, but over the years we have worked with many other design firms to help realize complex digital fabrication projects.

By the end of this year, we will officially launch our fabrication services company;

with lots of fanfare around it!

But for now, we are still doing all the same services, just with a more bold logo!

Regardez: 2022 BWC Architects logo!

Jillian Northrup
Check out what we and our sister company Model No. are doing to fight COVID-19
aerobox_large_408I23.6.jpg

We’re taking our design and fabrication experience at both companies and joining the fight against COVID-19!

We’ve developed a flat-pack version of an ‘aerosol box’ as well as helping cut face shields, printing parts for PPE, and looking at developing even more elements to help protect our medical heroes and fight COVID-19.

Check it out at https://model-no.com/covid-19/

And if you’d like to you can read more in depth about it as well here https://model-no.com/blog/2020/04/04/model-no-and-covid-19/

Jeffrey McGrew
Talking with Robots about Architecture at Autodesk University 2019

Honored to be included in such an amazing event and share the stage with such incredable people! The video for the Theater Talk I gave at Autodesk University 2019 is now live and you can see it here:

Automation is empowering, and we sure do need more of it in construction, but it's really hard to get right. In this talk I point out the various things that make it hard, both in general and specifically for construction, and propose what solutions have really worked for us at model-no.com and becausewecan.design.

A topic I’m both passionate about and still discovering the truths of I’d love to either talk with you about it or come and give this talk again. So reach out to me I’d love to have a conversation.

Jeffrey McGrew
Just a reminder to check out our new sister company that's all about designer sustainable and configurable furniture, Model-no.com

Really excited about the products now on sale at our new sister company Model No.

IMG_9311.jpg

It’s amazing, these products are not only stunningly gorgeous, but since they are made from bio-resins derived from food waste combined with FSC-certified hardwood they are fully sustainable. While you could just compost the whole table when you don’t need it anymore, they also have a recycling program that will take the table back, re-use some parts, and recycle others for you. And I mean real recycling, as in use it to make more tables, and not have it just wind up in a almost-landfill somewhere waiting to be actually recycled (which is sadly the fate of much plastic these days).

Also totally in love with how you can custom configure whatever you’d like. While there are easy to buy preset options, I adore playing around with all the shapes and colors to get just what I’m looking for.

Really proud of what this team has been able to put together, with a lot more awesome stuff on the way as well that I can’t talk about yet!

Check it out over at Model-no.com

IMG_9372.jpg
We're Hiring!

We are looking for a talented fabricator who’s excited to make new things in new ways and passionate about quality and craft. Responsibilities include running CNC routers, finishing parts, assembling custom fabrications, and maintaining our awesome machines and shop space. Willing to train the right person on the various technologies, but need to have had some exposure to digital fabrication, working online, and/or a quick learner.

Responsibilities:

  • Running CNC routing jobs, Maintaining CNC routers, and ordering CNC supplies.

  • Cleaning up parts & assembling completed custom fabrications.

  • Maintaining a clean and organized work area.

  • Following shop safety standards and company operations.

Required Skills:

  • Experience in custom fabrication, construction, millwork, woodworking, or equivalent required.

  • Demonstrated interest in CNC routing and digital fabrication.

  • Attention to detail, organized, team player, and self motivated.

  • Comfortable working with online for scheduling, task management, product info, email, chatting, etc.

  • Comfortable working in a dynamic, creative, and friendly team environment.

Benefits:

  • Paid vacation and sick leave.

  • Medical, vision, and dental insurance.

Bonus Points:

  • Casual office environment of serious professionals

  • Team-oriented work space

  • Group lunch

Please Apply with Resume and work examples to us@becausewecan.org

Jeffrey McGrew
BWC / Model No. Winter 2018 Open House - Friday, Dec. 7th - 5 PM - 9ish

We'll be opening our doors and raising a glass to new endeavors and all the wonderful people we work with. 

Please join us!
 
We'd love to introduce you to Model No. a new company bringing boundless furniture and accessories for your individual life, just as you need them. An on-demand, additive manufacturing, customizable furniture startup that BWC is helping launch.

In the design office we'll be showcasing some recently completed architecture and design-build projects, our new VR-empowered workflow, and some sneak peeks at Model No. products.

While down in the shop we'll be demonstrating our new (to us) 5-axis CNC router and Model No.'s amazing large-scale 3D printing capabilities.
 
Kids welcome, but it is a shop and a party. Lots of sharp corners around here. And they might learn some interesting new words!

Friday, December 7th 5PM - 9PM ish

Because We Can + Model No.
2500 Kirkham St
Oakland, CA 94607
(510) 545-9275

Click here for the Google Map.

All are invited, so come on by! We'd love to see you.

Small office remodel in downtown Oakland

This downtown Oakland office remodel we've been working on is just about done. It is so fun to see a space become transformed as we put in new the new finishes and furnishings. This is a small project with little to no actual construction, but still..... what a change! We (and the client!) are very please with the final design. 

New paint, new lights and soon to come, new flooring, doors and windows.

New paint, new lights and soon to come, new flooring, doors and windows.

Here is the space before the remodel began. We're still under construction and it's already an improvement!

Here is the space before the remodel began. We're still under construction and it's already an improvement!

We've removed all the doors and windows to put in more modern and insulative ones with aluminum framing.

We've removed all the doors and windows to put in more modern and insulative ones with aluminum framing.

Since we wanted to change the lights out anyway, it was a good opportunity to do something fun and interesting. The space is small, and we wanted to keep the design clean and open feeling. This nice design on the ceiling is functional and adds a bit…

Since we wanted to change the lights out anyway, it was a good opportunity to do something fun and interesting. The space is small, and we wanted to keep the design clean and open feeling. This nice design on the ceiling is functional and adds a bit of interest when you first enter the space.

The interior offices are all getting a much needed face lift as well. A bit of paint goes a long way. Soon all the furniture and the rest of the finishes and fixtures will be in to completely transform this place.

The interior offices are all getting a much needed face lift as well. A bit of paint goes a long way. Soon all the furniture and the rest of the finishes and fixtures will be in to completely transform this place.

The living walls we designed, with Planted Design are going up on the walls. These will bring in some much needed lush elements into the office, and will be striking to look at without taking up much space.

The living walls we designed, with Planted Design are going up on the walls. These will bring in some much needed lush elements into the office, and will be striking to look at without taking up much space.

Currently, back at the BWC shop we are working away to fabricate all of the custom furniture. Here the conference table is being glued up and Joel is busy making a matching cabinet.

Currently, back at the BWC shop we are working away to fabricate all of the custom furniture. Here the conference table is being glued up and Joel is busy making a matching cabinet.

Jillian Northrup
Congratulations to the Long Now Foundation on beginning installation of the 10,000 year clock

Congratulations to the Long Now Foundation on beginning installation of the 10,000 year clock. This is a must-see video showing publically for the first time just how far along they are on this bold, ambitious, and world-changing project.

If you're in San Francisco, you should drop by their home that we helped create, The Interval, to not only learn more about the Long Now's projects and overall mission, but to enjoy a wonderful conversation and possibly a drink!

Jeffrey McGrew
Jeffrey McGrew's talk on building industry automation

The popular talk that our own Jeffrey McGrew gave at The Interval (the bar & event space we designed), has been picked up again!

The wonderful blog Laughing Squid has a post today, as the topic continues to be relevant and demanding conversation. 

We hope you enjoy it!

Again!

"Robots do my drafting," explains architect Jeffrey McGrew, then gives a tour of automation on the jobsite, a future that is already here. Plus: robot bulldozers! Watch this talk in full 

 On February 10, 02015 McGrew spoke at The Interval on "Talking with Robots about Architecture": how architects and builders use automation today and how they may use it tomorrow.

Jillian Northrup
Come see Jeffrey talk about automation in the building industry at Autodesk University 2017!

Honored to be included in this wonderful and broad event. Autodesk University is the conference for all things Autodesk, which means it's THE conference for most 3D and CAD related things you can think of.

I've been invited to give a talk on a topic that's dear to my heart, and one we've spent the last decade working with, and that's applied automation in the building industry.

It's called 'Talking with Robots about Architecture' and it's a more detailed, deeper, technical version of the talk I gave at The Interval a year or so ago.

I'll be presenting our ideas on how to think about automation when applying it to your job and business, where things are with automation in AEC, general approaches to take when automating things, and how to make yourself somewhat future-proof so you won't get automated out of a job yourself. With lots of case studies and real-world examples both from our business and the industry, I'm excited to be offering up what I hope is the best talk I've given yet on this subject.

So I'd love to see you at Autodesk University on Thursday!

Jeffrey McGrew
Join us this Friday, August 4th for our Open House!

Summer is here, so let's have a party!

It's our August open house this Friday, August 4th 5PM - 9PM

We'll be opening our doors and talking about our work, making new friends, snacking, and raising a glass to all the wonderful people we work with. Hopefully with no preceding backhoe incidents this time.

Please join us!

In the design office we'll be showcasing the biggest architecture project we've tackled to date. Exciting! We'll also demonstrate some new fancy CAD tools that help us make extremely complex organic shapes very quickly. While down in the shop we'll be showing off prototypes for a few products we'll be launching later this year as well as mock-ups of a complex wood rib ceiling we're making for a modern home. Kids welcome, but it is a shop and a party. Lots of sharp corners around here. And they might learn some interesting new words! Friday, August 4th 5PM - 9PM ish 2500 Kirkham St Oakland, CA 94607 (510) 545-9275 Click here for the Google Map. All are invited, so come on by! We'd love to see you.

Jeffrey McGrew